


Cold Shoulder

by wonderflonium



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-09
Updated: 2017-04-15
Packaged: 2018-10-16 18:16:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10576806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wonderflonium/pseuds/wonderflonium
Summary: So, no-one appears to be doing this so...what if Archie and Jason were a thing before the show started?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, no-one appears to be doing this so...what if Archie and Jason were a thing before the show started?

Prologue:

Archie laid in bed, staring at the ceiling. A single tear rolled out of his left eye, and he thought, “How did it come to this?” He knew that as much as everyone in town liked him, they thought that he wasn’t very bright. He also knew that as much as they were right, they were wrong.  
A chuckle bubbled up as he recalled going to see “The Two Towers” with his father. Theoden had it all wrong, he thought. It didn’t take an invading horde of orcs to destroy his world. All it took was some antiquated thinking on the part of an outdated code adopted by a family of maple syrup robber-barons.  
A groan escaped his lips as he got out of bed thinking about his latest tryst with Ms. Grundy. He knew that he was only using the music teacher to occupy his mind after Jason told him flat out that they were never going to happen. Polly Cooper and Jason, well, that was also never going to happen either. If the Cooper’s or the Blossom’s caught wind of that, well, Hell would descend on Riverdale like a Maple tree killing tornado. The only thing worse would be if the Blossom’s found out about what really had been going on between Archie and Jason.  
Archie reached over to turn on his music only to hear Adele singing.  
He rolled right back over and put his face into his pillow.  
How could his life get any worse?


	2. The River's Edge, part 1

Archie knew that the first day of school would be hard. He’d been worried sick about Jason being missing but he knew that the other redhead would show up soon. Jason could never miss football. Whatever shenanigans he and Cheryl were up to, well, they’d sort themselves out quickly enough. They always did. That gunshot he’d heard on the 4th of July had nothing to do with Jason, right? He was ashamed that the day that Jason went missing and presumed dead he’d been using Ms. Grundy to get back at the jock for telling him that they could never publicly be together. Kevin did it, why couldn’t they? The Blossom’s were terrible parents for threatening to disown Jason if he came out.   
Jason never admitted it to Archie but Archie was fairly certain that Jason had told Cheryl. He kept expecting her to treat him badly, but she just ignored him like she always had. Those two had such a strange relationship. When he expected them to do something, they very often did the exact opposite. It was one of the reasons that he liked the older boy so much. He was excited for Jason to come back so he could show off his new bod to him. He was proud that he could finally compete with his secret boyfriend in the physique department.  
He pulled on his shoes and sighed as he got ready to meet Betty at the Choc-Lit shoppe. He wanted to tell her, but – baby steps. He’d tell her about his song writing first and see how that went. Oh boy, telling her about the music, then maybe that he was in love with a certain guy that had been dating her sister made his eyebrows lower (which only made his scar between them cuter, Jason said). Again, baby steps.  
Betty was waiting for him and they walked into the shoppe together. He thought that maybe they should get reacquainted before he dropped any bombshells on her. He hadn’t seen her since Jason’s “fake” funeral where the Blossom’s buried an empty coffin. Jeez, the lengths that some people will go to just to appease their stupid ideas about how their lives would work out. Golly.  
“So, what was the hi-lite?”  
“Of my internship?” Betty queried. Archie nodded. “Toni Morrison…says to me , ‘don’t rush this time, Betty, it goes by so fast at your age. One summer can change everything.’”  
Archie smiled at her as he thought that truer words had never been spoken.  
“Wow,” he said. “That’s so true.”  
Now, he thought. I’ll tell her about my mad skills with lyrics and a guitar. Let’s start there.  
So….he told her, and it went pretty well. “Betty, I haven’t even told my dad – let’s keep it between us.”  
“Archie, I’ve been thinking about us,” she replied. “And I – “  
The bell over the door jangled and the ginger looked over, only to see a beautiful brunette in a hooded cape walk in. “Holy cow!” he thought. “Who wears a hooded cape in this day and age?”  
Enter Veronica Lodge.  
“Hi,” she said. “How are the onion rings here?”  
“So good,” he replied.  
“My mom and I just moved here.”  
“From where?” he asked.  
“New York.”  
“Wow,” he replied. Then she started talking about some Trumbo Compote and Breakfast somewhere, and he just kept smiling at her and shaking his head. He thought that when Jason showed back up he’d like the urbanite. He smiled to himself. No-one would believe that he knew what that word meant.   
He walked Betty home, thinking about his reunion with Jason the whole time. School tomorrow would be interesting.


	3. Interlude 1 : Archie and Jason

Interlude 1: Archie and Jason

The boys met the spring before. Oh, they knew who each other were – Riverdale wasn’t that big. Jason just had never acknowledged Archie’s existence. I mean, gee, Jason was the captain of the football team and Arch was just this scrawny freshman who was known for his sunny disposition, his penchant for being a do-gooder with Betty Cooper, and for, well, maybe being a little bit on the less sharp side of the red crayons.  
Archie was hanging with Jughead outside the music room waiting to talk to Ms. Grundy about music. Lately he’d been having certain feelings that he didn’t understand and he was hoping that honing some sort of artistic expression would help him sort out what was going on. He hadn’t told anyone – not Juggy, not Betty, and certainly not his father. He might have tried to talk to his mom but he couldn’t even begin to entertain that thought. They used to be so close but she’d been gone so long that he was unsure who she was anymore.  
“Hey Arch, tell me what we’re doing here again?” Jughead asked.  
Archie ducked his head sheepishly. He hated lying to Jughead.  
“Ms. Grundy volunteers at the Y.M.C.A. and I needed to ask her about a fundraising event that I’ve been working on.”  
“Well buddy, as fascinating as that sounds, I should probably get home. You know my dad…” Jughead shuffled his feet and looked down in consternation. Archie reached over and gripped his friend’s shoulder in support. He knew better than to say anything. They’d both practically lived in each other’s pockets since they were in grade school. They knew each other’s everything.  
Archie inwardly winced. Like they used to know each other’s everything. This new thing he was trying to wrap his slightly challenged mind around was just too big for him to understand, much less share with even his bestie.  
Jug pulled his crown back out of his eyes. “ Talk at you later, you mental Lilliputian, you.”  
“Whuh?”  
“ Nothing,” Jugs replied as he sauntered off. Gears were turning in the angst-ridden boy’s head. Something was up with Archie and he was determined to find out what it was. He knew, though, that Arch wouldn’t just come out and tell him. Besides, it was probably just family issues, or maybe Betty issues. Jughead was continuously taken aback that Archie didn’t see how she really felt about him. He knew that the red-head was obtuse, but, I mean, seriously. EVERYONE knew but Archie. Sometimes he thought that his friend couldn’t find his way out of a cardboard box if someone didn’t give him detailed instructions. On second thought, detailed instructions would probably be way too complicated for the well-meaning boy. Jughead sighed as he contemplated returning home to F.P. Well, best get on with it, he thought.   
Meanwhile, as Jughead walked off, Archie waited patiently for the music teacher. Her door opened and the reigning Maple Crown Prince of Riverdale emerged with a thunderous expression on his face. Jason Blossom slammed the door shut, turned around and noticed the freshman looking at him sheepishly.  
“What the Hell are you looking at?” The Blossom boy asked him.  
Archie began to stutter and stammer and sweat profusely. “ I was waiting for Ms. Grundy,” he replied.  
“What the Hell for?” the football captain asked.  
Archie blushed brighter than his hair. “There’s this Y.M.C.A. thing – “  
Jason raised an eyebrow at the underclassman and abruptly burst into giggles.  
“Man, that is rich on so many levels.”  
Annoyance hit Archie like so many red-headed bricks. Why was Jason even talking to him? He’d never done anything to cross the Jock’s radar. Hell, he’d done everything to avoid ever coming into contact with any of the popular kids in school, not to mention a Blossom. He thought that if Cheryl Blossom ever even looked at him he’d pee his pants and go and hide in the nearest closet. Something about that thought disturbed him.  
“ Hey, you’re Jughead Jones’ best friend, aren’t you,” Jason said.  
“Was that a statement or a question?” Archie asked bravely.  
“Wait, you know the difference? Man, maybe you are more interesting than I thought.”  
Archie was confused. Mr. Maple Pants knew who he was? He knew that Jugs was his best friend? Why would a Blossom even notice him above an insect crawling on the sidewalk?  
“Hey kid, don’t let this conversation scramble your cute little noggin. Just, watch out for Grundy. She isn’t what she seems.” He regarded the younger boy with piercing eyes. Archie put his hands in his jeans and blushed even harder than before.  
“ Oh, that’s the way the red curtains are blowing. Listen, Archie Andrews, right?” Jason asked.  
“Yeah,” Archie replied sheepishly.  
“You thinking about music?”  
“ Yeah.”  
“ Well, maybe I could help you out. Grundy was helping me out along those lines, but that shit is seriously over.”  
“ Really?” Archie glanced up at the older boy with hope in his eyes. “ Why would you do that?” he asked.  
Jason reached out and cupped the other teen’s face in his hand.  
“ You remind me of me, and there’s nothing I like more than doing myself a favor. Just ask Cheryl. She’s practically me.”   
“ Okay,” Archie eloquently replied.  
“ Tomorrow night okay? Give me your phone, we’ll exchange numbers.”  
Archie handed the rich kid his phone. Jason put his digits in and then texted himself. He winked at Archie as he walked off.  
Butterflies bounced around in Archie’s stomach. What had he gotten himself into?

**Author's Note:**

> I've been watching this show from the beginning. I will be going back and writing after every episode how the two could merge together.


End file.
